Lectures on the Sutra of the Father and Son Assembly (166)

Why did the World-Honored One repeatedly speak about dreams?

The World-Honored One repeatedly spoke about dreams to awaken His father and urge him to attain enlightenment swiftly. For King Śuddhodana, the Buddha's father, had been king for a long time and was deeply immersed in the pleasures of the five desires, finding it difficult to free himself. The Buddha used dreams to advise His father to quickly cultivate the path, seek liberation, and cease indulging in the pleasures of the five desires. Simultaneously, this served as a warning to all disciples, enabling us to recognize the illusory nature of all phenomena. When the mental faculty truly acknowledges this illusory nature, one can realize the Way, attain the fruit of the first fruit or higher on the Hinayana path, and thus embark on the path to liberation.